Food & Nutrient Lists

admin Nutrition & Foods

Food and Nutrients Lists

Much of my clinic practice is based around nutrition as it is my observation and belief that good health cannot be achieved without a balanced diet and good digestion.  Most people have nutrient deficiencies and sometimes nutrient excess which can cause relative deficiencies of nutrients.   For example copper can be high relative to zinc and iron and blocks their action in the body.  This can be a common cause of low energy and fatigue.

Sometimes people are not prepared to alter their diets a great deal. “It’s all too hard with my busy lifestyle” or similar explanations.  These people are often content to take supplements to make up for the deficiencies.  Supplementation can be good when levels of nutrient are very low but so is eating foods containing the nutrients we need.  Clients often ask me to write down for them the foods containing particular nutrients so I have decided to put all this information and more in this article.Remember that minerals are only in a particular food if they are in the environment of the plant or animal.  If the mineral is not in the soil, for example, it will not be in the plant or animal that eats things grown on the soil.  In Western Australia the soils are deficient in zinc so unless it is added to the soil or to the food it will not be in the food.  In New Zealand soil there is very little selenium. Feeding cattle too much grain can also have the effect of depleting them of zinc just as it does for humans.  Milling of grains also depletes the foods of nutrients. Exposure to heat and sunlight also affects the nutrient levels.

Nutrient Food Lists (Excellent & Good Sources)


*Needs magnesium to activate this vitamin in the body.






Some Lesser Known Vitamins





*Lecithin should not be taken if the person has excessive lead levels as it prevents excretion of this toxic metal.
Minerals



*For proper absorption of magnesium, calcium and phosphorus, vitamins B6, C, D and protein are required.  Factors inhibiting magnesium are coffee, alcohol, tobacco, stress and excess copper levels.



*Remember if it’s not in the ground it’s not in the food.







*Deficiency symptoms include liver cell membrane damage due to oxidant stress, Neonatal jaundice due to a breakdown in red blood cell membranes, platelet problems due to cell membrane damage.

Vitamins and Minerals[1] Needed to Support Elimination of Copper Excess and Foods Containing Them[2]

Vitamin E

Almonds, Eggs, Tuna, Sunflower seeds, Soybeans, Asparagus, Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, Carrots (not carrot juice), Celery, Swiss chard, Green beans, Parsley, Pumpkin, Spinach, Tomatoes, Tomato Juice, Tomato paste, Black currants, Elderberries, Figs (fresh), Gooseberries, Seedless grapes, Kiwi Fruit, Logan berries, Melons, Mulberries, Oranges + orange juice, Nectarines, Papaya, Peaches, Raspberries, Blueberries.

Vitamin C

Grapefruit, Black currants, Elderberries, Gooseberries, Seedless grapes, Kiwi fruit, Logan berries, Melons, Mulberries, Oranges + orange juice, Papaya, Strawberries, Mandarins, Brussels Sprouts, Broccoli, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Kale, Peas, Sprouted alfalfa.

Zinc

Seafood, Eggs, Soybeans, Lamb, Sunflower seeds, Turkey, Pumpkin seeds.

Iron

Lentils, Eggs, Jerusalem artichokes, Beets, Green beans, Leeks, Lettuce, Capsicum, Tomato paste, Spinach, Tuna Trout, Lamb, Parsley.

Molybdenum

Beans, Peas, Butter, Lamb, Kidney, Legumes, Lentils, Lima beans, Oats, Soybeans, Sunflower seeds, Wheat germ.



The foods listed are low in copper as this mineral tends to accumulate in the body.  Zinc, iron and molybdenum are copper antagonists as is vitamin C.  Vitamin E helps with copper burden.

Sources for this Article and further reading:  Nutrition Almanac; John Kirschmann and Nutrition Research Inc., Visual Textbook of Nutritional Medicine; Igor Tabrizian.; The Nutrient Bible, Seventh Ed. Henry Osiecki.; Laugh with Health, Manfred Urs Koch.



[1] Source: Nutrition Almanac; John Kirschmann and Nutrition Research Inc., Visual Textbook of Nutritional Medicine; Igor Tabrizian

[2] Foods listed are generally low in copper as this mineral tends to accumulate in the body to excess.  I have excluded foods that may be high in one of the required nutrients but also have a reasonable level of copper.  Some nuts for instance are high in zinc and vitamin E but are also high in copper as is beef.

Share this Post

adminFood & Nutrient Lists